Man Dies Attempting To Take A Selfie With An Oncoming Train In Oregon Because Stupidity

SteveHolt11 years ago

A man attempting to take a selfie on some Oregon railroad tracks was killed Saturday morning when his selfie attempts were photobombed by an Amtrak passenger train.

The man, who, absurdly enough, was not the only human on Earth killed because of a train-track selfie, was on a road trip from Tacoma to Portland when he and a woman stopped to take some photos and smoke.

From The Oregonian:

When a northbound Burlington Northern-Santa Fe train passed about 10:28 a.m., the man “walked out between the northbound and southbound set of train tracks to pose for pictures as the train passed by him,” said Charlie Rosenzweig, Cowlitz County Sheriff’s chief criminal deputy.

The traveling partners didn’t realize an Amtrak train was approaching on the southbound set of tracks, Rosenzweig said. The Amtrak train struck the man posing for the photo as it passed, he said.

The man died at the scene, which police said was located near the 300 block of Dupont Road. The woman was uninjured. The southbound train was delayed by the investigation for about three hours.

This is equally tragic and stupid. There is no “right way” to take a selfie with an oncoming train. Just don’t do it. Best case scenario, you have a mediocre photo with a train. Worst case scenario, you are splattered everywhere by a giant, fast-moving piece of metal.

Police have opted not to release the victim’s identity..

[via The Oregonian]

Image via YouTube